Icebound Isolation
by Techhead832
Summary: Time has past since the time of The Great Thaw and Arendelle has become prosperous under the rule of the Snow Queen. But little do they know that the King of the southern isles has set his eyes on Arendelle. Whether the royal family of Arendelle lives or dies depends on themselves and even more so on the one that they have forgotten.
1. When Frost Meets Snow

Icebound Isolation

Ch. 1

**Third Person pov**

"Mommy! Daddy! Look at all the snow!"

One afternoon the King and queen of Arendelle had decided to take their little Elsa out in the woods near the north mountain for her to play. Elsa herself asked for the outing since she was turning 4 in a couple of weeks. The king however was hesitant about the outing. Partially because he was worried that someone might see their daughter's powers over ice and snow.

Though that was a concern of his, it was mainly because his wife was 6 months along with child. Though he was worried for both his wife and child's wellbeing he had learned the hard way what can happened when you opposed her when she was pregnant with Elsa. Memories of that day still haunt his darkest nightmares.

Though the queen wanted this to be a family outing Jacob the head servant of the court of Arendelle had convinced the king that it was best that he should come along on this outing to help her majesty. She made it no secret that she believed that she was fine on her own. But the king and Jacob convinced her for the sake of the baby he should be there to assist them.

By midafternoon they had a snowball fight, went sledding and made a replica snow family of themselves. Elsa was happy to run and play in the snow and use her powers to make snowflakes fall all around her. When they grew tired from the exertion the king and queen sat watching their little Elsa have fun.

They began discussing what they should name their second born child. With the help of Jacob to act as a neutral party it was decided that if the child was a boy he would be named Henry. If the child was a girl (which the queen believed it was) the child would be named Anna.

While the king and queen were so busy discussing their child that it required the word of Jacob to bring it to their attention. "Your majesties I do believe a blizzard is starting to pick up." They had stopped their conversation and looked around to see the beginning of a heavy snow fall and winds of increasing strength.

"But that is impossible. It was clear as day when we came out and we have been out for only a couple of hours." Quipped the Queen

"Agreed. Under normally circumstances a storm of this degree would not set in without any warning." The king said. The Queen quickly turned to him saying to him in an accusing tone "Are you suggesting that this is Elsa's fault?" The king retorted "Her powers are growing stronger. For all we know she…"

"YOUR MAJESTIES!" Jacob loudly snapped grabbing their attentions. "How this storm came about is not the issue. We all need to get back to the castle as fast as we can."

The king sighed "He's right my dear. Elsa come along."

"Yes papa" Elsa said. Gathering together the group had begun their return to the castle. They hoped to get back before the worst of the storm hit.

*One hour later

**Queen pov **

The wind was blowing harder than any of them have felt before. It was snowing so hard that they could barely make out the castle in the distance. To reach the castle the fastest they agreed on the cliff pass. With each passing moment their path grew more and more dangerous.

"Quickly your majesties! We must get out of this storm" Said Jacob

"Elsa keep close to me" She said

"Yes mother"replied Elsa

The group was so concerned with the wind and snow that they never heard the crack before it was too late. The ground beneath Elsa's feet fell and she went tumbling down the slopes sliding off the edge of the cliff.

"NO! ELSA!" she screamed. 

Losing sight of her child the she sank to her knees feelings of lost gripping her. Tears forming she screamed her daughter's name in disbelief in what happened.

"Your majesty it was not a sheer drop. It is likely that Elsa is alive"

"He is right my dear. Even though the fall was steep there is probably at least 30 feet of snow to cushion her fall"

The feelings of lost that dominated her were replaced with determination to find her daughter. She stood and turned to them. "Then we must find her before the storm gets any worse." The king replied "No." The queen looked at him with widened eyes not believing what she heard.

"I must find her. You two need to get back to the castle."

Her majesty narrowed her eyes but before she could Jacob quipped in "Your majesty, he is right the storm is getting worse. For the sake of both you and your child we must get you back home." She obliviously wanted to protest but she could not deny the danger.

Placing his hands on her should the king spoke with assurance "I will find her. I will bring her home. I promise" Though reluctant she nods and walks towards Jacob,"Come your majesty we need to get you out of this cold" Turning away from her husband she began the journey back to the castle.

**Elsa pov**

She fell. She kept falling through the air and snow losing all sense of the world around. She wondered if she would fall forever, if she would ever hit bottom. Her thoughts were then interrupted by her impact in deep snow. Standing up she wiped the snow from her dress. "Mama…Papa!" she screamed. Greeted by nothing but ice and snow she walked. Hoping to find her parents and go home. She walked for what seemed to be hours.

Through the wind and snow she was finally able to make out the faint shapes of two figures. She quickly ran to them. She ran as fast as her legs could take her through the drifts half her height. As she drew closer to the figures she then noticed something. _One…one of them is a snowman….but the other one has a cloak just like daddy's. It must be daddy. _Running towards her father she grasped his leg.

"Daddy!" Elsa spoke relieved to find her father. She hugged her daddy's leg as hard as she could. She looked up to him to see her father's face but to her dismay the man she held was not her father. The man was a stranger with a confused and shocked look on his face.

"You're not my dad." She spoke with a face of despair.

She backed away from the man and fell into a drift. With tears in her eyes she whispered "I want my daddy." She began to cry. She wanted her warm bed, her toys but most of all she wanted her parents to hug her and tell her everything was going to be ok.

"Hey"

She looked up with tear filled eyes looking at the man. He was now crouched in front of her with a pained look on his face. He said "Don't cry. Everything going to fine" With his free hand he reached up and wiped the tears on her face

"What's your name?"

Elsa spoke warily "Elsa" Her reply brought small smile to the man's face. "Well Elsa, how about we go find your father together?" Elsa nodded wanting her family more than ever.

The stranger had picked her up and held her tightly against his chest. She put her hand to his chest and felt the rough fabric of his sweater. But against her will a layer of frost spread around her hand. Elsa became afraid. Her mother told her that people would be afraid of her because of her power. She looked up expecting to see a scared looking man but instead the man's face was shocked.

Elsa was worried that the man was going to drop her and run away leaving her in the snow. But instead he grasped his staff and moved to the nearest tree. With the end of his staff he tapped the tree and a large patch of frost appeared on the tree.

Elsa looked at the tree shocked. "You're like me." She whispered. She looked up at the man and was greeted with a warm smile. That smile chased away all apprehension she felt in her heart. She leaned against his chest and grasped his sweater tightly and the man began his walk through the storm to find her father.

**King pov**

The king began to lose hope. He has searched and searched and found not a trace of her. Not that this accursed storm was helping. It was covering everything in a blanket of snow. Removing any trace on anything.

He sank to his knees in misery. "What kind of a father loses his child." He said.Memories of his daughter flooded his mind. The happiness he felt when he first held her as a baby. The laugh she had when she played in the snow. The coolness she gave off when she hugged him. With tears in his eyes he screamed her name against the howl of the winds.

**Elsa pov**

"ELSA!"

Through the howling of the wind Elsa had heard the sound of her father. "Daddy!" Elsa screamed looking for her father but nothing could be seen other than the wind and snow.

"Hey." Elsa looked at the stranger. "Want to see something cool?" Elsa had cocked her head to the side wondering what he meant. Then the stranger lifted his staff into the air and slammed it against the ground.

**King pov**

A sound like thunder echoed through the area causing the king to look up and see something that was impossible. The blizzard had stopped in an instance. The wind had stopped blowing but the snowflakes… they have stopped completely. Before him countless snowflakes floated in the air all around him, glistening like diamonds in the light.

_Could…..could Elsa have done this...No. Even though her powers are growing she couldn't stop a blizzard for several miles around. Could she? _

Though the king was awestruck by the event, he noticed out of the corner of his eye that a stranger was walking towards him. The stranger appeared to be a man in a blue cloak with a hood concealing his face. He had bent over putting something down, something that he would never forget.

"Elsa?"

"Daddy!" Elsa screamed as she ran to her father

He quickly got up and was running for her daughter. All that mattered to him in that moment was getting to his daughter. As soon as they got close he scooped Elsa up in to his arms. "Daddy" Elsa spoke lovingly.

The king held her tightly. Almost as if he was afraid. That if he let go his little girl she would disappear. Through the embrace he felt her cool touch against him, making him happy to once again hug his daughter.

When the king looked to the stranger he saw that the man that had brought his daughter back to him was walking away. "Wait!" He yelled. The man continued walking away as if he didn't hear him. With Elsa in his arms he ran towards the stranger. He pleaded "Wait. You brought my daughter back to me!" The stranger had just continued to walk away deaf to his pleas.

"I don't even know your name." He reached out to grab the man's shoulder…. only to have his hand go through him. Both men had stopped. The king was shocked not believing what he saw. What had just happened violated everything he knew about the world. Even the tales of sorcery he had read about spoke of nothing of this.

The stranger had thrown down his hood revealing hair white as snow. "Jack." He turned towards the king. "My name is Jack Frost." The king was so shocked that he couldn't think straight. Here stood a man that he could not touch, claiming to be the very embodiment of winter. _His complexion…..it's so white that it's not unlike that of a dead man._

"You two better get back inside." Jack raised his hand "A storm is coming"

With a snap of his fingers the silence was replaced with the sound of a winter flurry. The wind and snow had blinded both the king and Elsa for only a moment. But when they were to look upon the man who claimed to be Jack Frost…..he was gone. As if he was never there.


	2. Forgotten Treasures

**Hello this story is going to take place after Frozen (obvious because of the summary I know). Jack Frost will not have met the guardians leaving him in his original lonely state. He will still be 300 years old since that is when we see the most of his personality.**

**There will be some new and old faces in this fan fiction.**

**Also there will be some surprise twists to the powers (I am not making any drastic changes just some add-ons I figure would work for their characters).**

**My apologies to the readers I forgot to write the chapter title on the document. I'm still new to this. The title for chapter one is 'When Frost Meets Snow'.**

**Eidetic memory:**

**Commonly referred to as photographic memory or total recall, is the ability to recall images, sounds or objects in memory with great precision**

Chapter 2

Forgotten Treasures

***1 year after frozen. In the beginning of winter **

**Third person pov**

Elsa wondered why she always had to wake up like this. Like Anna she woke up with hair like a birds nest and half way to being awake. Looking outside she saw that there was a heavy snowfall and she quickly got dressed so she could meet Anna for breakfast. As she went through the halls she hoped that she had not slept in too late for breakfast. As she walked into the dining room she saw Anna sitting at the table eating breakfast. "Good morning Anna" Elsa stated. Anna said "Morning. Kai already took the liberty of setting out your breakfast for you." Elsa began to eat her breakfast, chatting with her sister about what was going on in the village, some of the people they've met, and the nearby kingdoms.

Anna looks outside and remarks "Looks like that snowfall just got worse. Elsa, could you maybe change the weather a bit? I wanted to go down to that new restaurant that opened up for a date night with Kristoff. " Elsa smiled at that thought. Kristoff and Anna had married in the spring just under a year of the Great Thaw. Though marrying someone you've known for nearly a year wasn't unusual. Elsa couldn't help but feel that maybe they should have waited for longer. Although she was wondering if maybe she felt that way because she was jealous of what they had.

"Sorry Anna, but I'm not going to interfere. It's best if nature sorts itself out."

Anna pouted" Fine I guess we'll have to think of something else to do." Anna said "Wait a minute why don't we go through our old baby things today. We've been talking about using some of our old things for our kids." Elsa stated "_Your_ kids Anna, I don't see myself having any at the moment." Anna smirked "That's because you don't have anyone lined up yet. Even though you still have received letters from eligible bachelors that have asked to court you."

"Please Anna. Those _bachelors_ as you put them would only marry me for political reasons. There is no love in them." Elsa said. "Though I wouldn't mind going through some of our old things again" Anna smirked "Alright then we'll make a day of it"

"Make a day of what?" Kristoff asked as he, Olaf and Sven entered the dining room. When they sat down at the table Anna said "I wanted to go through some of our old things to see if there is anything we'd like to use" Kristoff smirked "Ok then. Sven and I have enough ice in storage for the winter months so I can have a day off today. I'll join you guys." Elsa turned to Olaf "What about you do you have any plans?" Olaf bubbled "Well I was going to go down into the village but this snow storm is preventing that. So I'll join you guys too."

"Your majesties, the mail for today has arrived." Kai announced

Elsa putting on her serious face asked "What do we have today Kai?"

"Nothing much today fortunately just some requests from neighboring kingdoms for some cloaks, ice, things like that and another request for a new trade agreement from the duke of Weselton. Shall I give him our usual response Queen Elsa?" Elsa said "Yes you may Kai." In one swift movement Kai threw the letter from the duke into the fire. "Ah, it appears there seems to be a letter specifically for you and Anna your majesty." With that said Kai handed the letter to Elsa to open and left the room.

Elsa opened the letter and read it. When she was finished Elsa said excitedly "Anna! Jacob's coming back!" Anna surprised asked "What?! Let me see that letter!" Elsa handed the letter to Anna who read over it quickly. She screamed "Yes, Jacob coming back. This great! It'll be so good to see him again." "It would be even better for the rest of us if we knew who you two were talking about." Kristoff stated. Anna startled "Didn't we ever tell you guys about Jacob?" When Anna received three shacking heads she babbled "Well Jacob he's family, well technically he isn't but he is you know." Kristoff turned to Elsa "Would you mind starting us off Elsa? Anna seems to be too excited about this."

Elsa began "Jacob…..he was there for us when we couldn't be there for each other. When I isolated myself from Anna I felt lonely. Even with mom and dad trying to keep me company it just wasn't enough. Jacob… he knew of my gift. When our parents were busy, Jacob would sometimes visit me on his spare times and we'd just talk or play games. It was nice having someone else around. After all you can't tell everything to your parents, some things you have to keep a secret from them. "

Anna replies "Yeah, Jacob was like an uncle to us. Sometimes when I was young we'd have tea parties in my room or he'd help me with my homework." Anna sighs with frustration "I would have struggled with some of my projects without his help."

"Yeah, he helped me with my school work too." Elsa replied

Olaf says "He must mean a lot to you guys." Anna says "He does. Besides our parents, he was the only person was really there for us as a friend. Well he used to be."

Kristoff asks "What do you mean he used to be?"

Elsa says "He wasn't just close to us. Regardless of his position as a servant he was a close friend to mother and father. When they…died, Jacob was just as heartbroken as we were. He did his best to comfort us but there was only so much he could do."

Anna says "About 8 months after they were lost at sea…. Jacob left us."

Olaf questioned sadly "You mean he died?"

Anna turns to Olaf and nearly shouts "What?! No! He didn't die, he just…. got up and left the castle. "

Kristoff asks "Why did he leave? Did he give you any reason to why he left?"

Elsa sighs "No he never told us why he was leaving. He said that he needed to do some traveling for a while, but I don't think that was the real reason for his departure."

"Your majesties"

Everyone turns to face Gerda "A guest has come to castle. I have informed him to wait in the throne room for you Queen Elsa."

"Thank you Gerda. Did he give you his name?" Elsa asks. "No your majesty, he did not." Gerda replied

"Well then let's go meet this mystery guest of ours." Kristoff says.

Anna says "You guys go ahead. Elsa and I have to go make ourselves presentable."

Olaf asks "Aren't you guys already presentable?"

Anna scoffs "Presentable for family and friends, but not for a guest visiting the castle. You never know, it might be a suitor for Elsa." Elsa rolls her eyes at Anna "Honestly Anna if it were up to you I would marry the first man I met." At her sisters response Anna face change from excited to shock. At this Gerda takes this as her cue to leave whispering only loud enough for Olaf and Kristoff to hear "Huh. We almost made two months without bring that up. It must be a new record." Kristoff stands from his seat and looks to Olaf and Sven "Come on you guys let's let them get ready and see who this guy is." They as they left Olaf looked back to see a glaring contest going on between the two sisters.

**Kristoff pov**

We walked down the hall leaving the girls to themselves since they required 'preparations' for our guest. As we walked we each talked about who this guest might possibly be. I insisted that it had to be the head of the merchant's guild since they were always trying to get on Elsa's good side so that they may benefit from it. Sven wanted it to be a nearby farmer because they were always kind enough to bring him some carrots.

"Maybe it's someone who brought the last flowers of summer or maybe it's someone who needs warm hugs." Olaf suggested

"You really like warm hugs don't you Olaf" Kristoff wondered

"Yeah it's my favorite thing in the world. Oh no wait my favorite thing is summer. Or it could be you guys" Olaf stated. As we drew closer to the door to the throne room, Olaf finished with "Well we'll find out who this guy is in a minute"

I opened the door the door to see the large throne room which was always polished and kept clean by the palace servants. They have always kept this room clean, even when I couldn't find I single spot in it. Well I'm not one to get in the way of what people felt was necessary for their job. Out of the corner of my eye I saw our guest.

This mystery guest turned out to be a man. He appeared to be a man in his late 50's, clean shaven and with the face of someone who knows a little bit of hard work. As we came near him I found that even though he was as built as I was, I actually had to look up to see his face. He had a dark blue long coat on and a vest to match. His pants were a dark gray that gave the appearance that he had come a long way to come to the castle.

"Well, well here are some unfamiliar faces around here." The guest said.

"Seems like you the unknown one here" Kristoff added

This had earned a chuckle from our guest, who began to circle me like a shark. "So you must this Kristoff that I heard so much about." He remarked. "From what I hear you're an ice harvester are you not?" In normal circumstances I would hear a sentence like that from one of these 'nobles' of the court. Usually they meant it in a mocking tone as if to indicate that I was lower than them. This guy though, there wasn't any contempt in his words it was simply a question. "Yes I am"

He was now standing right in front of me. I was trying (and failing) not to be intimidated by this guy. This guy knew how to make it seem like he was huge and the person he was facing small. This guy was pushing me, trying to figure me out. "From what I hear you seem to be selfless, kind and rather protective over those who you care about. Is that right?" Using every speck of bravery and willpower I had, I asserted "Of course I would. I would do everything I could do to protect the ones I love."

It seemed like my conviction actually amused him began because he had a smile on his face. This annoyed me even more. What surprised me was that he then dropped his guard and said "Good. I was worried Anna had married someone who didn't have a good heart. It appears though that this certain someone is actually going to take care of her."

This guy actually seemed like he was he cared for Anna. "Now look here buddy. I don't know who are or who you think you are, but let me make this clear to you. I don't appreciate being pushed around and I especially don't like people questioning my morals. Just who are you anyway?"

"Ah my apologies my name is….."

"Jacob?"

I turned to see Anna and Elsa standing in the door way with their jaws practically hanging on the ground. I didn't know what to think from what I heard from them this guy was supposed to be sweet and caring. This guy gave me the impression that he would crush me given the chance. I glanced towards him to see his face soften.

"Hello, it's good to see you both again" The man known as Jacob said.

Elsa and Anna then ran towards us and when they got to us they gave him a group hug. As if he was a long lost relative of theirs. Olaf piped in "Wait a minute. This is the guy you were telling us earlier?" Exiting from their group hug, Elsa confirmed "Yes, this is Jacob"

Now this guy made sense. What they told us this guy was like family to them, it looked like it was a feeling that went both ways. Then somewhere in my mind it clicked. How this guy was treating me was like how a father would act around a boy that his daughter brought home. He wanted to see if I was right for Anna. _'Well since he's technically family his behavior towards me is appropriate I guess'_ I thought.

Anna asks "What are you doing here so soon? Your letter said you would be here in a couple of days"

Jacob questioned "What, it only got here today? I sent that thing ages ago. I guess some things never change, particularly our postal service."

Anna asks "Anyway, what have you guys talked about till we came in?"

Jacob answers "Nothing particular. I was merely sizing this one up. When I heard you had a husband who was an ice harvester I decided that I would come and see just who he was."

Anna came over to me and wrapped her arms around mine saying "Oh Jacob you didn't have to do that. I'm happy with Kristoff. I love him." I gave her arm a loving squeeze to show him that she meant just as much to me as I did to her. What he said next though threw me off. "What happened to waiting for Prince Charming?"

Anna declared with unhidden contempt "HA! I met Prince 'Charming'. He turned out to be a real as…'

"Language Anna. A princess does not swear, unless it is to an oath." Jacob said sternly. He leaned forward and threatened "Or is it necessary for me to wash your mouth with soap like the old days?" This caused Anna to let go of my arm and try to hide behind me as if to use me as a shield. She stammered "No, no, no, no. Its fine I don't swear, honest."

Jacob relaxed and said "Good." Jacob turned to me and responded "When I became responsible for dealing out the punishments I always made sure that they were memorable. Always broke my heart a little bit to do so." I confessed "I suppose we all have to do things we don't like for the ones we care about." Jacob nodded in agreement "My most sincere apologies for the way I acted earlier Kristoff. My actions were uncalled for to say the least." Jacob apologized.

Kristoff conceded "Don't worry about it. I should have seen something like this coming when I meet a member of Anna's family. Though I have to admit, you aren't exactly what I expected from what they told us about you."

Jacob replied "Ah they talked about me. Hopefully it wasn't anything bad.

Anna answered "We wouldn't say anything bad about you Jacob"

Jacob said "Oh really? Well since we are travelling down memory lane, did they ever tell you three about their first taste of chocolate?"

Anna begged "Oh come on that's not fair. Don't tell them about that."

Olaf questioned "What are you guys talking about?"

Jacob said "I was the one to introduce them to their first chocolate when they were young. When they first ate their bit of chocolate I knew that it instantly became their new favorite thing. Sadly they noticed that I was holding a box that contained even more of them. When they finished their first piece they nearly tackled me to the ground just to get the rest of the box." This had earned a snicker from me, Olaf and Sven just from the thought of the two of them trying to overcome Jacob just for some chocolate.

Elsa said "Really now Jacob you make it sound as if we were a couple of bulls" Jacob divulged "When it comes to you two and chocolate, I see little difference between either parties. Especially considering the way the two of you chased me through these halls whenever I had chocolate in my arms." Forget snickering, the thought of the two little girls chasing this mountain of a man through the halls had us in stiches. Anna pleaded "Can we please change the subject?" Taking it as our cue, we suppressed our laughter and decided to keep that memory in our minds for later.

Elsa agreed "Agreed Anna. So what brings you back to the castle anyway Jacob?" Jacob answered "I was hoping to obtain a servants position at the castle. If you wish to give me a low level position I would under…." Anna interrupted "Oh that won't be necessary." Elsa agreed "You were the best head servant we've had, so it only makes sense to give it back to you." This had earned a smile from Jacob. "Thank you Elsa" He replied.

Elsa said "Well I better go fill out the paper work to make it official and the work for the other files. We're going to go through our old baby things today. Jacob you go see Kai and he'll get you set up. As for the rest of you if you would go ahead and go to the room we had refurbished that would be great."

**Third person pov **

An hour has pasted since their reunion with Jacob. Anna looked up from her book to look out the window only to see the blizzard still blowing with a fury. Anna sighed and thought "_Of all the rooms the castle why did we have to meet up in the room I almost died in." _ Though this was the same room Anna had insisted that they change the furniture. Along with a table and chairs near the window the servants had added in and another sofa was faced parallel to each other so that they may face a carved mahogany table that Kristoff had bought from a merchant in town. Anna smiled at the memory of Kristoff getting the table. They had paid a decent price in her opinion but all the while bringing it back to the castle Kristoff repeatedly insisting that the merchant was a crook.

Though Anna stated to Elsa that she felt the room needed to be cozier, the real reason was she wanted little reason to associate the room with what happened a year ago. She could still hear Hans's cold voice speaking of his plans for her and her sister. _"Someone who could easy speak of killing someone and faking love for someone else has to be a real monster"_ Anna thought. She hated the reoccurring feeling of despair and brokenness she felt when she learned the truth. That it came back when she was in this room alone.

"I can't believe it."

Anna turned to see Kristoff and Olaf playing chess, while Sven was sitting near the fireplace like a cat. "I can't believe I'm losing at a game of chess to a snowman that only picked it up a week ago." Kristoff stated with his head in his hands. "Yeah it is strange. At first I only wanted to play since the pieces were so pretty." Olaf said. Kristoff shot Olaf a glare and looked at the board. After a moment Kristoff face contorted in a smirk and he moved a piece on the board "HA! I got your knight!" Kristoff proclaimed. Olaf looked at the board and made his move. "I got your queen Kristoff." Olaf stated in a mocking tone swinging the piece in front of Kristoff face. Kristoff shouted in disbelief, causing Anna to chuckle.

Olaf looked over to Elsa and his face brightens as if in realization. "Wait on a minute Kristoff" Olaf said as he left his chair and hoisted himself on the couch beside Anna. He then lifted Anna off the couch and above his head announcing "NOW I have your queen!" This caused Anna to burst out laughing and had earned a chuckle from Kristoff. Sadly Anna leaned a little too far to the side causing Olaf's arms to come off from his body and her to land on the other side of the couch.

"You okay Olaf?" Anna asks

"Yeah. Can I have my arms back? My back itches." Olaf inquired

"Sure Olaf." Anna said as she reattached his arms. _"I guess even though there are bad memories in this room there is still a chance to make some good ones"_ Anna thought as Olaf used one of his arms as a backscratcher. "Hey, you guys having fun without me." Anna turned to see Elsa standing in the door way. "Hey you made it." Anna replied. Elsa sighed "No thanks to all that paperwork." Kristoff asked "What was it this time? Did the merchant guild ask for a tax decrease again?" Elsa smiled and said "Not this time Kristoff. I'll tell you guys about it later. For now we have boxes to go through."

Kai, Gerda and Jacob entered the room each with a box of their old baby things. They each went through the boxes, looking at their old clothes and toys remarking whether or not they could use them. This took a lot longer than thought because with almost every dress or toy came a story. When they finally went through most of the boxes the clock struck three. Jacob asked "Ah midafternoon already is it? Well then how does some tea sound for everyone?"

"Yes please Jacob" Elsa replied "Oh" Anna said "Could you grab some of the chocolate chip cookies from the pantry Jacob?" Jacob replied as he left "The day you don't have chocolate sometime of the day is the day I will genuinely be concerned Anna" Anna shouted after Jacob "Hey we've cut back a lot."

Kristoff spoke up "Leave it be Anna. He's right, you guys like chocolate more than should be allowed." Before Anna could retort a loud thump was hear from the hall along with a grunt of frustration. "Mr. Bjorgman, would you mind giving me a hand with this?" Kai asked from the hallway. Kristoff got up and exited the room and returned with Kai carrying a medium sized chest. The two of them placed it on the table with a grunt, indicating that the chest was by no means light. The chest was unlike any the group had seen before. The body of the chest was made of metal with the exception of the edges. They seemed to be covered in some kind of white crystal. Upon closer inspection there was a worn symbol above the lock that appeared to be….a snowflake?

"Where did that chest come from?" Elsa asked. Anna Kneeled down in front of it and said "Yeah I don't recognize this chest from our childhood Elsa" Elsa turned to Kai and asked "Where did you find it?"

"I found it in the back of the storage room with your baby things your majesty. It took me a couple of minutes to clean up. It was covered in dust and cobwebs. If I had to guess it hasn't been touched in years." Kai concluded. Olaf asked "How did you bring it up? By the sounds of things you had some trouble with it." Kai sighed "If this was the ONLY thing I had to carry up the many flights of stairs I would have made it by myself."

Kristoff moved over to the chest and attempted to open the chest only to find it locked. Kristoff turned to Kai and asked "Hey would you would you have the key to this thing?" Kai nodded and withdrew a large ring of keys and moved to the chest. The servant had tried key after key only to find that none of them had fit the lock. Kai remarked with a look of confusion "I don't understand I have every key to every lock of this castle. I should have the key!" Elsa placed a hand on Kai shoulder and said "It's ok Kai. You tried your best". Kai fretted "But I should have the key, ever since you entrusted this responsibility to me I've kept every key on me at all times."

Kristoff pondered "I don't know if it was that far back in the storage room it's possible that the key has been lost." The thought of this caused Kai face to fall. "Let us worry about it Kai. You have other things to attend to." Anna said. Kai nodded and left the room all the while grumbling about failing in his duty.

When Kai left the room silence had descended upon the group. They looked at the strange chest wondering why they didn't have the key and what exactly was inside. Olaf broke the silence asking "Hey Elsa, why don't you make a key out of ice? I bet you could do it!"

They looked towards Elsa with hope in their eyes. Sadly Elsa had a frown on her face looking at the chest and sighed. She explained "If I knew what the key looked like I could do it but if we had the key we wouldn't be in this situation in the first place". Elsa looked up to them and admitted "To answer your other question no I wouldn't be able to make a key from scratch. There were never any books on key making in the castle library. I wouldn't even know where to begin."

Olaf inquired "Well if we can't make a key, why don't we pick the lock?"

Anna looked at Olaf and questioned "Where did you learn about lock picking Olaf? We never taught you about something like that."

Olaf answered "I heard some guys down in the town talking about picking a lock in order to get into some building. When I asked them what that was, they told me right there." The others in the room looked at each other in worry. Silently they agreed that they shouldn't press any further on this, considering Olaf could have potentially overheard a crime being planned. While Elsa thought that she should send some of the guards into the town to inquire about this.

Kristoff admitted "I never picked up something like that. There was never any need to and I doubt you girls would know something like that." The girls nodded in agreement wondered what they could do. Finally Elsa groaned "I guess there is nothing we can do." Anna agreed "Yeah it seems so. Well we can take it to the blacksmith but he's probably closed by now."

Kristoff remarked "We can take it in tomorrow. It's a beautiful chest, seems a shame to have it broken into. The crystal will probably get wrecked in the process."

While they were all standing around the chest they heard from the hallway "Tea's here." Jacob proclaimed. He entered the room without looking at the group and he immediately made way to the table on the other side of the room. As he walked over to the table he bumped into the chess board knocking the pieces on to the ground. While Jacob apologized for his actions Olaf whined "Aw I was winning" Kristoff retorted "Ha. Better luck next time buddy. Here I let me give you a hand J…." Anna shushed him and indicated him to watch.

As the group looked at Jacob he picked up every piece from the floor and placed exactly on the board as it was before. Olaf hung his mouth in astonishment while Kristoff stammered "That's amazing you put every piece where it was before" Elsa stated "Jacob here is one of the few people in this world that have an eidetic memory. He can remember everything that ever happened in his life. He once told me about one of his days as a child. He recollected details like what he had for breakfast, what he wore and even what the weather was like."

"It's nothing special Kristoff they're just memories after all" Jacob said as he poured the tea. "Come on; don't let the tea get cold on you now." They each grabbed a cup of tea and settled into the sofa while Jacob was setting some fresh cookies on a plate from them to eat. "So what have you found in those boxes Anna? Anything you can use?" Anna looking at the chest replied "Yeah, we'll be able to use some of our old things. I wish we could open up this old chest though." Jacob with his back to them puzzled "Chest? I don't recall either of you two having any chest."

The group was then startled by the sound of shattering glass and looked towards Jacob. Jacob had dropped the platter with the pot of tea and the cookies. With a look of horror plastered on his face Jacob stammered "Wh….at…..where did it…No. It doesn't matter. I'll go put the chest back."

Elsa stepped in front of him and claimed "You know something about this chest don't you Jacob. What is in this chest?" Jacob stepped around her and said "It doesn't matter I'll go put it back" Anna stepped in front of him and declared "Jacob you obviously know something about this chest. What is so important about this chest?"

Jacob tried to get around Anna, proclaiming "I will not say. I made a promise to your parents and I will not speak of it. Now please stand aside" Elsa stormed "What promise?! What are you not telling us Jacob?!" While the three of them were arguing with one another Olaf had noticed that there was something of interest around Jacob's neck and motioned to Sven to get it. While Jacob eyes were on the two princesses Sven quickly moved on him and tore what Olaf had indicated off his neck. When Jacob had noticed he tried to retrieve it and Sven retaliated by throwing it to Kristoff out of Jacob's reach.

When he caught it Kristoff claimed "Well, well look at what we have here." Kristoff held up a key that had a snowflake that matched the one above the chests lock. Anna accused Jacob "You had the key?" Jacob turned away from Anna to avoid her gaze. "What is in the chest?" Elsa demanded. Jacob's silence only served to fuel her frustration "I am the Queen of Arendelle Jacob! Now tell us what is in that chest?!"

Jacob looked her in the eyes and spoke with conviction "Open it and see for yourself." This admittedly was the last thing she expected to hear after all the fuss he made before. Anna then voiced what was on everyone's mind at that moment "Why?"

Jacob then looked at the chest in a faraway gaze and conceded "Though your parents made me promise never to tell either of you of…this." Jacob gestured to the chest "They never made me vow to stop you from finding out. In my personal opinion…..they never should have kept this from either of you. That is why I will not stop you from opening the chest now that you have the means to."

After a moment Kristoff moved towards the chest and unlocked the chest. When he opened the chest Kristoff remarked "Well I didn't expect this." At this everyone looks inside to see what is there. Within the chest there are three boxes in total. The first box a small one, the second one was about the size of a forearm, and the final one was a decorative box that looked to be a present for someone.

Elsa turned to Jacob and asks "Do you know what these are for Jacob?" Jacob nodded and gestured for them to sit. When they were seated Jacob withdrew the first box and gave it to Anna. Hesitant about the box Anna looked towards Jacob whom gave her a reassuring nod. Anna lifted the top of the box up and her eyes showed surprise and confusion. She lifted from the box a…..rattle.

This rattle wasn't like your ordinary rattle. Rattles are usually made out of wood or metal but this one was made ice. The toy had patterns racing up along the handle that spiraled when coming to the head of it. The pattern of it was comparable to a snow fall. When Anna shook the rattle it created a beautiful sound. It sounded like the bells of the Arendelle choir that they had used for their Christmas pageants. For some inexplicable reason the mere sound of the rattle had erased any emotions they felt before and replaced them with pure joy.

Anna cooed "Kristoff this would be perfect for our kids. I sure they will love this. Here take a look." Anna hands the rattle to Kristoff and he began to inspect it with great interest. Olaf inquired "So what in the other boxes?" Jacob then rose from his seat and grabbed the larger box and handed it to Elsa. Losing no time Elsa removed the top to reveal what lied within.

What the box held was what appeared to be was a Viking horn and to their surprise it too was made of ice. Rather than the pattern of the rattle, the horn took on a different style. The horn had a smooth finish with a frost like pattern running up it from end to end. "What an odd thing to find" Elsa remarked smiling "Well it's still beautiful." Anna gasped "Look Elsa there's and inscription on it." Elsa turned the horn over and confirmed that there was an inscription on it. Elsa read out loud.

_When you find yourself in need of salvation _

_Lost in a blinding storm of isolation_

_For you to be found _

_The horn you must sound_

When Elsa was finished the inscription silence had descended upon the group as they had tried to comprehend the meaning of those words. Olaf broke the silence questioning "Why would someone inscribe that on the horn?" Anna mused "I think the more accurate question would be 'why would Elsa inscribe that on the horn?'"

Elsa asked "Why do you think I made the horn Anna? It could have been anyone."

Anna explained "Oh come on Elsa it had to be you. 1) They are made of ice. 2) They are beautiful like your ice castle. 3) They haven't melted yet; any other ice would have melted by now. You heard Kai; no one's touched that chest in years. You probably made these things and our parents must have hidden them away like they tried to hide your power."

"Yeah you're probably right" Elsa conceded, placing the horn on the table. "No, this is not your ice." Kristoff chimed in. All eyes in the room were now focused on Kristoff whom had been so engrossed in the rattle that he barely glanced at the horn. "What?" Elsa asks.

Kristoff clarifies "This can't be you ice Elsa. From what I can tell from your ice and the ice the horn and rattle are made from, I can safely say that you never made these things."

Anna argues "Oh come on Kristoff. You're being silly."

"Hey, I am an ICE HARVESTER. I know my ice; I know the differences in ice." Kristoff asserted

"Elsa, would you mind giving be a sample of your ice to compare" Kristoff asked. Elsa nodded and created a block of ice that Kristoff could hold in his hand. Kristoff then placed the rattle on the table with the sample of ice in between the rattle and horn. Kristoff began "Look the ice Elsa gave me is like any other ice I've seen her make. It's clear like glass, there aren't any impurities or air bubbles in it and the color is more bluish then ice normally is." Kristoff then gestured to the items beside the samples. "But these pieces are completely different. If I was to compare with anything I know it would be the ice I harvest from the lake or even frost on a window. Heck, even the color is more of blue and white. It's not Elsa's ice any way I see it."

"Please Kristoff, we've seen Elsa make different kinds of ice." Anna said. "Try to replicate the rattle Elsa. After all you're the only one that could do it." Though Elsa was hesitant, she obliged just to see if she was capable of this. In a swirl of magic she tried to replicate the rattle only to create a similar rattle but the designs, transparency, sound and color were not the same. Thawing the ice she tried again. Elsa tries again and again to create to create the rattle only to each time only be able to copy the shape of it and not come close to the original design of the rattle. In her frustration Elsa exclaims "Why can't I do this if made them in the first place?!"

"You are not capable of copying the item because you never any of them" Jacob said. The group turned to him. Jacob had not spoken a word when he had begun to hand out the boxes he merely watched as the events unfolded. Anna questioned "Well if Elsa didn't make the rattle or the horn then who did?" This caused Jacobs to speak with unmasked irritation "As I have said before I cannot tell you anything."

Elsa pleaded "Jacob please if these items were made with magic then I wish to know who made them."

Jacob admitted "I wish I could tell you something."

Anna having enough said "Why can't you tell us anything? Is it because of this silly promise" Jacob suddenly slams his hands against the table and booms "I CAN'T TELL YOU BECAUSE I CAN'T REMEMBER!" Everyone in the room was in shocked silence. Kristoff looked over toward the girls. It was obvious to him that Elsa and Anna have never seen Jacob be this angry in their time with him. That was something that concerned Kristoff. That maybe they pushed him too far with what was in the chest. Then Jacob with a look of shame in his eyes slumps back into the sofa. "I can't remember" Jacob whispers.

Olaf said "But Anna and Elsa said you can remember everything"

Jacob says "Though I can remember almost everything that has happened to me. When it comes to that person I can't remember him. I can't remember his face, what he did, or even where he lived. I can't even remember his name."

This had shocked the girls to their core. Whenever they had forgotten something they could always depend on him to remember for them. Now this same man had confessed to them that he could not remember something when it was of importance. They could tell that this upset him because it seemed as if it was a great shame to him. As if he wished to forget that he had forgotten something.

Elsa asks "Jacob, you said you can't remember what he looked like or his name right?" Jacob gives a slight nod. "Do you remember anything about him at all? Like what he was like, any key details?" Jacob mumbled "Even if I did I am bound by my promise not to tell you anything."

Anna pointed out "Jacob. The world is not like our parents feared the people of Arendelle love Elsa for her power. She doesn't have to hide who she is. She isn't a monster to them. They love her and respect her for her. Please Jacob you said yourself that you feel that this shouldn't have been kept from us. Please tell us something." Jacob was silent for a long moment, Anna's words weighing down on him. He felt conflicted because the ones that are meant to be protected with that promise are urging him to go against it. Their parents believed that whatever they did, they did for the protection of their children. Finally he said "Ok. I'll tell you what I know"

Elsa asked "Who was this person like?"

Jacob began "I can't remember much. But he always carried a staff with him" Olaf interrupted "Oh like merlin." Kristoff commented "Merlin didn't exist." Olaf countered "But magic exists. Maybe he was a wizard." Elsa quickly shushed them gestured for Jacob to continue

"He was young but…very old as well. When he visited he would often make Elsa's lessons into games so that you would have fun doing them." Jacob said.

"You mean like my geography classes" Elsa questioned.

"No, not those lessons. He never interfered with your education" Jacob answered. Elsa raised her eyebrow in confusion. Jacob conceded "When you were young, you really only used your power to make snow or ice fall around you. Your power kept growing, it became more….wild. He taught you how you could control and use your power. Like how to make a snowball… you used to have trouble with that…I think. So you two would have a snowball fight as a lesson"

Anna asks "Do you remember anything else?" Jacob pinched the brow of his nose and grunted, as if he was struggling to remember. Jacob said "He always smiled but his eyes…they seemed so sad." Jacob sighed and ended "I'm sorry but that's all I can remember. I wish I could tell you more." The group was then crestfallen. They had hoped for more. What Jacob had said only gave them a rough idea of who this person was. It seemed as if he was important to the sisters. This information only brought up more questions for them. Who was this guy really? Why did their parents see fit to keep him a secret from them?

Olaf then stated "Do either of you remember this guy. If he's sad maybe a warm hug would cheer him up" Anna replies "No I don't recall ever hearing about someone like that in the castle. Not from mom or dad or even the palace servants. What about you Elsa, do you remember this guy?" It was obvious to the group though that Elsa was struggling to remember and when she responded it was with disappointment. "No. I don't remember him at all from my childhood."

Olaf guessed "Well if this guy was magical maybe he used his magic to remove your memories. It would explain Jacob's lack of." Kristoff asked "If he was capable of doing something like that why would he do it?" Olaf shrugged at this.

Anna questioned "How long was this guy around Jacob?" He sighed and said "He first came to us when Elsa was just turning 4 and was around until about a year before the incident" Kristoff inquired "What incident?" Jacob said "The incident that drove your would-be step parents to separate their daughters." Kristoff remembered what he was talking about. The Elsa had divulged to them what had caused Anna and Elsa to be driven apart some months ago. Looking over to the sisters he saw Anna trying to comfort Elsa who had never truly forgiven herself for what happened. Kristoff inquired "You said he was around when Elsa was 4 and a year before the incident. Why hasn't he been around since after that?" Jacob replied "I do not know why. He just….didn't show up one year." For a man who they did not know the girls had begun to worry. What if something had happened to him? After all they remembered how the people first reacted when Elsa's powers were revealed.

Olaf states "Hey maybe we can call him"

Everyone turns to Olaf and Elsa asks "What do you mean?" Olaf clarifies "Your horn, the inscription says when you use it you can be found. Blow it and maybe he will come back." Elsa said exasperated "Olaf, I don't think the inscription is meant to be taken literally. Besides it's just a horn he would have to within the limits of the castle to hear it."

Olaf continues "He has a staff, he's probably magical he'll likely hear it." Kristoff points out "Just because someone has a staff doesn't make him magical" Olaf countered "Then how do you explain the snow lessons huh" Kristoff countered "He probably figured out how to help her. Anyone could do that"

Anna said "Well it couldn't hurt. Besides I want to hear what it sounds like." "Yeah Elsa, come on blow it" Olaf encouraged. Dubious about the Olaf's argument Elsa reluctantly lifted the horn to her lips and blew the horn. The sound the horn made was a low haunting sound that you would expect from a Viking horn. When she stopped blowing the sound had continued to reverberate within the castle halls. As if the air itself wished for the sound to never end. Then just as it came, the sound within the halls had died. When the sound was gone Olaf ran around the room and even went looking down the halls. Olaf got back up the sofa and stated "Well that's disappointing."

Kristoff questioned "What you were expecting? That he would appear out of thin air and say 'hi haven't seen you guys in a while. How have you been?'" Olaf asked "Yeah, why?" This had earned an eye roll from the sisters. Kai entered the room grabbing their attention. Kai announced "Supper will soon be served your majesties"

Elsa stated "Come one, I'll tell you guys about the ball were planning over supper." Anna shouted excitedly "A ball? Where having a ball?"

Elsa said "Yes Anna. I finished sending out the invitations before I came with our things."

Kristoff stated "So that what those 'other files' were"

Jacob groaned "I should have come back later. Balls are a pain in the neck."

"No they're not. Balls are always fun." Anna insisted

Jacob groaned "For those attending, for the servants it's a pain in the neck positioning the tables, gathering the food, dusting and polishing every square inch of this castle.

Anna spoke sadly "Do your regret coming come back?"

Jacob said "I will never regret coming back to you two."

Elsa said "Come on you guys, let's go eat. Jacob could you put the chest in my room I want to look at it some more"

"Yes Elsa"

As they left the room Jacob returned the items to their respective boxes and put them in the chest. He then noticed that they never opened the present that was in the chest. _Well I guess it's not very important matter. Besides even I don't know what's inside it. _Jacob thought. He then picked up the chest and walked towards Elsa room. Along the way he was greeted by many of the palace servants, those who knew him and those who were new to him. When he arrived at Elsa room he entered and placed the chest by the window. Jacob stood there in Elsa's room and remembered the times of when they were together after she cut herself off from Anna. He then left the room to assist with supper. But unbeknownst to him and the other residents of the castle the horn within the chest had begun to faintly pulse with a blue light.

**It occurred to me that considering Elsa's isolation that naturally she would feel the need to be close to someone so I crafted Jacob to be someone who would take care of the girls during their childhoods. After all every child needs a friend.**

**I found that Rise of the Guardians never really addressed the possibility of children with an eidetic memory so it's hard to know how the contradictions of belief would work. After all you are brought up believing you parents are wiser then you so they must be telling you the truth that certain things don't exist but the child has memories that contradict that truth.**

**So I thought having a person minds at odds with itself would work best because the person wants to believe but due to their upbringing they would suppress their childish beliefs. Leading the mind to 'suppress' the old memories. **

**Please Review**


	3. Preparations

**To answer Crimson Gamma question about my update frequency I am trying to update every week or two. Usually I will spend one week thinking about the chapter, then in a couple days to a week of writing it up. I will try my best to stick to this level of frequency, but some chapters will take me different amount of times. You guys will likely get a chapter or two sooner or later then it usually is.**

**By the way this was originally meant to be one chapter but I felt that the two parts needed to be divided because it was getting really long. Also I could introduce my ocs in greater detail, which I spent a lot of time (and I mean a lot) thinking up. So you guys will get two chapters instead. The other chapter will be up in a few days.**

Chapter 3

Preparations

**Third person pov**

Elsa was in her room writing on her desk. It has been days since she initially sent out the invitations, but every day there was more to write. Replies to the invitations seem to come every day and she also had to message other guilds. They needed food from the farmer's guild, fabrics from the tailor's guild and other things.

What she knew they needed most of all were more guards. Many of the people that were coming were people of high rankings of their kingdoms which meant more people potentially being targeted by their enemies. This meant that she needed to tighten her security. Otherwise if there was a death, the allied kingdom may blame Arendelle for the loss. If they found our level of security lacking because of the loss it could lead to trouble. She had just finished the letter for the security guild (a group that assisted the guards in security of the villages) for a request for men.

_There. This should get enough volunteers to make up for everything. _Elsa thought

"Elsa"

Elsa turned to see Anna standing in the doorway with a smile on her face "What are doing?" Elsa sighed in frustration "Finishing up some requests for some guilds and replying to some of our allies." Anna spoke with concern "You need to take a break all this ball stuff is starting to wear you down."

Elsa replied "I can't we need to strength the bonds with our allies. Even though I unfroze Arendelle last year; people are still afraid that I would do the same to their homes. This ball isn't about having fun for me, it's about securing our safety and keeping our friends close by."

Anna said "Yeah, but you shouldn't do all that at the cost of your health." Anna looked over to the chest near the window. "Come on we haven't looked at the chest for a few days." Elsa nodded happy to get away from the paper work. Anna opened the chest and withdrew the boxes that contained the rattle and horn; she then laid them on the dresser. They each open their respective boxes and placed the objects side by side.

Elsa sighed "I still can't believe that there could be someone else that could make these things. I tried to find out anything since Jacob told us what he could remember, but there's nothing. Not a word, not whisper of his existence. It's like he's a ghost."

"Yeah Kristoff was talking to some of the guys around town and found nothing either. Wait a minute. There was a third box in the chest. We never opened the present Elsa."

Anna moved over to the chest and she withdrew the decorative box. Upon closer inspection of the box, it too appeared to be made of ice. There were frostlike patterns that made it look like a present you would find under a Christmas tree. The box had a simple design with a lid resting on it rather than a box wrapped in ice. Anna placed the box on the dresser on the dresser with the other items.

"I talked to Jacob about the chest the next day. He said that the chest to came from the guy as well."

Elsa's face brightened "Wait, it's not made from ice. Do you think there could be a manufacturing name on the chest? Something this unique would be made specifically. If there's a name…"

Anna continued "Then we could track it down to the salesperson and that someone would know who they sold the chest to and we could find this guy, great idea."

They then moved over to the chest and began to inspect it. To their disappointment the two girls checked the chest again to see if there was a name on the box only to find nothing. Anna sighed "I guess this guy made the chest himself, just like everything else"

"Your majesties"

Gerda walked into the room "There have been more responses for the ball."

Elsa states "Thank you Gerda. Just put them on the dresser, I'll look at them later."

Gerda placed the letters on the dresser. She then picked up the present and remarked "Well, well haven't seen that in a long time." Elsa was shocked that was yet another person who knew about this chest. Anna asked "Wait you recognize that? Did you know about the chest?" Anna gestures towards the open chest.

Gerda responds "No your majesties. I knew nothing about that chest. Well that's not exactly true. I knew of the chest, but I was not directly involved with it."

Elsa then sat on the bed and asked "What do you mean you knew of the chest?"

Gerda says "There was a rumor among the servants years back. That there was a special chest that the king and queen had kept secret. What the chest contained only the King, Queen and Jacob knew of."

Elsa questioned "If you didn't know anything about the chest, then how do you recognize the present?"

Gerda said "Well, that's a bit of a story your majesty." Elsa motioned for her to continue.

Gerda says "It was when I was doing my duties. I had just bought your parents their tea when they were in the study. When I left them I saw Jacob running down the halls towards me. Man looked like he discovered the secrets of the universe. It was when he got near me that I saw that he was caring that present in hand. He had rushed past me and burst into the study that their majesties were in. Thinking nothing of it I continued to walk down the hall. It was when I was halfway down the hall that I heard shouts coming from the study" A look of shame overcame Gerda. "When I heard the shouting I had decided to….eavesdrop on them."

Anna assured "Don't worry about it Gerda. What you heard might be important. From what Jacob told us what was in the chest seems to be important. Can you tell us what you heard?"

Gerda nodded "Though I didn't open the doors, their voices were loud enough for me to know who was talking. Unfortunately I missed the beginning of what they were shouting about"

***Flashback**

"Jacob, promise me. Promise that you will never speak of this. After what happened to Elsa, she became unstable; she could not control her powers. Merely hearing the name sends her off into a storm. Look what happened to the ballroom. She heard one of the servants talking about her _imaginary _friend she went and made a mess of it. She doesn't even believe in him anymore, but somewhere in her mind it stirs up emotions and sends her off in a fury." The king said.

The Queen continued "What… happened….it brought only pain and misery for Elsa. It would be best if Elsa never knew of him. Anyway we are forgetting about him it would be best not to remember him."

Jacob responded "Your majesty she only became unstable because she was upset over what happened. We could have had them work through this. Remember he has had a big impact on her life. He helped her embrace her gift, taught her the beginnings of how to control it."

The Queen countered "It is not a gift it is a curse Jacob! The world will not accept her because of it."

"He believed that you both were wrong. He believed that she would be accepted, that she would be loved for her just being herself. He could guide her; make sure that she knows that she doesn't have to be afraid. What happened with Anna is proof that she needs him by her side." Jacob claimed

The King asserted "But he will not be by her side will he Jacob! As far as she is concerned he was her imaginary friend that she out grew. That he doesn't exist."

The Queen said "Besides what does he know about people? We were the first people to ever notice him. He knows nothing about people. With his ignorance it would be better if he did not interact with people and go back to his oblivion."

Jacob snapped "Do you even realize how much pain that has cost him. That nonexistence of his, all those years of isolation and loneliness. That is the path that you two push her down. It will only lead her to feel that she needs to be alone cut off from the world, from everyone. You even separate her from her sister! What good can this possibly cause?"

"Anna will be safe. Elsa will be safe." The Queen assured

Jacob snapped "Safe? You call being afraid of who she is safe. Afraid that she will hurt anyone she comes near her, even her own family. He taught her to not be afraid, to love her gift. Even the trolls agree with his reasoning."

He countered "No they didn't. They maybe experts of love but they are experts on control. We can teach her to control it, to hide it."

Jacob countered "Hide it! Hide it from her friends, her family, from her future husband and even her own future children!"

The Queen pleaded "Jacob, please while we can still remember….promise us that you will never to speak with Elsa or anyone about him."

Jacob whimpered "but…"

The King coaxed "You know what happened, what he did. Please Jacob for Elsa."

Jacob conceded "Fine I swear…reluctantly to never let her know.

Queen said "Thank you Jacob."

Jacob asserted "Know this your majesties nothing good will come of this. This secret or this separation."

King said "Fine. Then we are agreed that he will never be spoken of in these halls again. So long as we are all alive. Not that we will remember any of this tomorrow. I can already feel my memories of him fading."

The Queen agreed "Mine too. What about you Jacob?"

Jacob admitted "…I can remember bits and pieces but nothing consistent."

King pointed out "Well we never would have remembered him if not for that box. When the girls finished with their things we put them in that chest. Add that box to it Jacob. I don't want to see it again."

Jacob conceded "Very well you majesty."

***Flashback end**

When Gerda had finished her story silence had descended upon them. It occurred to the two sisters that what Gerda overheard that day, was the very day that their parents made Jacob promised not to speak of. Gerda spoke up "What I had heard that day did not make sense to me at the time, but now that I know about your powers your majesty it seems to make more sense."

Anna said "They mentioned an imaginary friend of Elsa's, do you know of it?"

Gerda chattered "Well when the king and queen had you Princess Anna. They had paid more attention to you. This is natural because you were a newborn and needed more attention. From what I can guess Queen Elsa had made up an imaginary friend to deal with their lack of attention and her loneliness. Though this imaginary friend of yours Queen Elsa was rather strange to me, usually an imaginary friend would always be there. Your imaginary friend on the other hand seemed to be only around during the winter months."

Elsa said "What do you mean? Jacob said he was always around."

Gerda corrected "Always around during the winter months. He seemed to leave when it got warm"

Anna questioned "How come we have never heard anyone talk about this imaginary friend?"

Gerda stated "Well after I…overheard that conversation that day the queen made the palace servants promise not to discuss your friend. She said that it upset you so we gladly obliged."

Elsa asked "Gerda you been with us for a long time, almost as long as Jacob. Was there ever anyone that ever visited in the winter months specifically?"

Gerda stated "Your majesty I can gladly state that there was never anyone like that in my time here, besides your imaginary friend of course."

Elsa asks "How do you know he was imaginary? From what we heard from Jacob he seemed to be rather real."

Gerda disclosed "He must be mistaken then because I know he did not exist. One day I came across you playing in the hall. When I asked what you were doing you said 'I'm playing hide and seek with my friend' and I asked 'what friend?' you then pointed to the wall. You said 'That friend, he's counting at the moment so I better go and hide'. I looked over to where you pointed and saw no one there. That is how I can safely say that this friend of yours does not exist." This had confused the two sisters because one person said that this man existed but another stated the opposite.

Gerda conceded "Well I better get back to work. Lots of things to prepare for the ball your majesties" When Gerda had left the two sisters were left pondering what Gerda had told them. Anna asked "Do you think this guy actually existed?"

Elsa admitted "I don't know Anna, but if he did he can apparently make himself invisible."

Anna chided "Guess Olaf was right this guy is magical."

Elsa said "It might be not be so. It's very possible Jacob was mistaken and mixed up this imaginary friend with a very real person."

Anna countered "Oh come on Jacob wouldn't do something like that. He can remember things like that. Even if he can't remember who this guy was, it doesn't mean that he was someone else. It just doesn't seem like something he would do."

Anna continued "Well we'll figure it out later. Let's open present. I want to see what is inside."

Elsa smiled "You open it. You always liked fancy decorative boxes more than me. Someone probably made that with you in mind" Anna went and picked up the box and returned to the bed with Elsa. Anna stated "I don't think so; the tag says 'For Elsa'. It has to be for you." Anna then placed the present on Elsa lap. It was then that Elsa noticed the tag on the box and that it did indeed say that it was for her. Losing no time she lifted the lid off the box and gasped at what she saw.

What the box held was necklace. The necklace had crystal segments along it with a heart shaped crystal at the center of it. The necklace like all the other items was made of ice. This necklace was very much different from the other items. If they had to guess the necklace was crafted with much greater care than the other items. As if the craftsmen spent days making sure every last detail of it was perfect for the wearer. But across the center of the heart was a noticeable crack.

Anna whined "Aww. That's a shame. If it wasn't broken you could wear it for the ball." Elsa nodded in agreement "Wait a minute, it's made of ice. You could fix it Elsa!"

Elsa gestured to the necklace "I don't know Anna. I couldn't make the rattle, what if I can't fix this?"

Anna retorted "Yeah but you're not making something from scratch. You'll just fix the crack and maybe make the rest of it a little bit shinier to make it look good." Elsa looked towards the necklace dubious over her logic and waved her hand over the necklace. The magic that had emanated from her hand had then rolled over the necklace. Before their eyes the crack disappeared from it and the necklace then took on a new shine to it.

Anna cheered "See I knew you could do it. It looks as good as new. Now you can wear it to the ba…..." It was then that the sisters heard a loud ***CRACK*. **The smaller segments of the necklace had immediately cracked across their surfaces. The crack on heart segment also reappeared and grew larger causing the heart to break in half. The girls sat there in stunned silence. Elsa muttered in horror "I made it worse."

Anna comforted Elsa "Don't worry about it Elsa. That thing doesn't want to be fixed." Elsa then placed the top back on the box and returned it to the chest. Elsa said "I don't understand. Why would it do that? Judging by the way it was crafted whoever made wanted it to be perfect."

Anna reasoned "Well maybe the different forms of magical ice react differently."

Elsa retorted "Still on that this guy is magical Elsa. Honestly you're starting to sound like Olaf."

Anna explained "Well he has to be. It's the only way everything makes sense. Jacob did say he gave you lessons on your powers. Speaking of Jacob he wanted our opinions on some of the decorations. We better get going." Elsa said "You go ahead Anna; I'll be there in a bit."

When Anna left the room Elsa moved over to the chest and placed the boxes that had the horn and rattle back in the chest. Leaving the room Elsa wondered about the items of the chest. For everything she made with her ice she could feel the emotions that made it. When she made the ice castle and Olaf she could feel the sense of happiness and freedom emanating from them. When she used her magic to make a skating rink or thawing the ice she could feel the love flowing from it.

The items of the chest were different from her ice though. When she felt the rattle she could feel joy overwhelming her, which chased away whatever else she felt. The horn had a feeling of understanding and gave her hope. Hope that everything was going to be alright. The necklace was completely different though. She could feel love and apprehension from the necklace. She also could feel something else, something that had corrupted the necklace. What she felt from the necklace was….

Misery

**Tuh da **

**End of chapter**

**Don't worry; the next one is coming real soon. If you guys have any more questions post a review and I'll do my best to answer them.**

**Review**


	4. Deals in the Dark

**Chapter 4**

**Deals in the Dark**

**Seth pov**

It was late and it was dark as I rode to the meeting place. I am Prince Seth of the Southern isles, second born of King Gaius ruler of the southern isles. Under the king I was once one of the most influential people in my kingdom. Now after all that has happened I am reduced to sneaking around in the dark just for some power. I had rode for hours and now finally I am at the mouth of the headquarters. A dark and filthy cave. We couldn't meet in a tavern or in the woods, oh no it wasn't right he said. My accursed younger brother had insisted he had to be in an out of the way place. Though I couldn't argue with his logic, the caverns in this area go on for miles big enough to hide three armies.

I heard the pull of a bow strings from the cave and stopped in my tracks. A voice from the cavern said. "Those who stand over a fallen foe should beware"

"For the fallen shall rise again and cut off their head" I replied.

I heard the gentle release of their bows and saw an archer that had a hood covering his face walk from the cave entrance. "Prince Seth I am here to guide you to the meeting room. Please get off you horse and follow me." I did as he asked and another one of his men took the reins and led him into another cavern where they likely hid the other horses.

I followed my guide through a long dark tunnel and when we came to the end I was engulfed in light. Looking around I could see countless soldiers running about doing their duties. The most mind numbing thing about the ridiculous trek was the sounds from the forages. From what I have heard day in and day out the smiths made weapons and armor for our armies. These caverns undoubtedly made the sounds echo through them, likely heard from half of this place. As if he could read my mind my guide said "Do not worry Prince Seth, where we go the noise will be blocked. The higher ups can't stand it either." He replied

When we had stating to go through some of the more cramped tunnels I asked "How far are we from the meeting room?"

"Why brother are we starting to feel claustrophobic?"

To my surprise I saw my guide and remove his hood and he turned to me. My guide turned out to be my own brother. My own brother was playing me, my brother Than. I cursed my foolishness for not being able to see through his trickery.

Than WesterGuard, sixth Prince of the Southern Isles and strains from the series of children from the second wife of King Gaius. Like many of my brothers we kept ourselves clean-shaven but rather than combing his hair he always kept a brown haired mess (at least he ran a comb through it when there was a special occasion). He sported his leather armor with his choice of weapons. He favoured the long bow and short sword the most (though he is not untrained in others).

He specialized in being a hunter and trapper. He spent years hunting a variety of animals from rabbits to bears. Of course that was the official story; if you were to ask those in taverns they would speak of rumors that he has grown bored with hunting animals and started hunting people. _A simple rumor made up by what the common folk assumed. _I mused._ It is interesting though how many rumors are somewhat truthful_.

"Out of all of us you should be the one who is claustrophobic brother. You do love the woods more than the palace after all." I countered

Than chuckled "You would be surprised how many animals hide in our kingdoms caves Seth."

Out of all my brothers he was one of the few that concerned me. He was not afraid of getting his hands dirty and he knew how to be quick and efficient about things. Father had him trained under one of the kingdoms best hunters and to anyone who knew better knew of his other teacher. The teacher that trained was one of our employed (unofficially) assassins_. I suppose that's why my brat brother has him working for him._ I thought.

As we walked through the halls we came to two large doors. We entered the room and to my surprise when the doors were shut the banging of the forges seemed to lessen. _It seemed he was telling the truth. There's a first for everything I guess._ I thought. "Welcome to the heart of our hideout brother."

"So Seth I am actually surprised that you came. After all you made it no secret of your distain for our little brother. Ever since he came into the spot light you have hated him, maybe even jealous of him. " Than sneered

I growled "Why would I be concerned over him? He is not an obstacle to me"

"The rest of us believe you think otherwise brother"

I turned to the side to see my other brothers, Nolan and Acel. I seemed everywhere I turned there was another one of my brothers. Not that that was a bad thing these two are highly useful. Even more so if I agreed with what their head proposed.

"Yes brother, when it comes to him there is always more than meets the eye" Nolan claimed

Nolan, third son of the Southern Isles royalty. Nolan was the biggest of all of us (physically that is). His face bore a head of brown chopped hair, a chiseled chin that matched his fierce hazel eyes. He spent every day of his life training in combat. While Than was more of an archer type, he took on another approach. Nolan was a heavily armored close range fighter specializing in Warhammers and long swords. Nolan's way was 'If you can't see the fear in their eyes, you're not close enough'.

Sadly Nolan was not known for his intelligence. Even though he was the original three of father's first wife, he has been mocked (well behind his back) for his stupidity. This made him a human ox that could be directed when he was told so. To my disadvantage Nolan was attached to Hans, our royal runt. Hans saved his life back in the day and since then he followed him around like a dog. If anyone ever tried to hurt him, Nolan would there to beat him half way to the other side. That is what makes him my biggest obstacle his wiliness to help those he cares for, namely Hans. Of course things like that can be used to my advantage

"Even after my years of distain for him, I can see that he has been doing well in his time brother" Acel stated

Acel fifth in line for the throne way was different from most of us. He was a man of politics and finance. All of my brothers knew how to fight; Acel on the other hand only knew basic self-defence. He spent his time sharpening his mind, spending days pouring over our libraries finance and political sections. Which means he know more than most about money and how to use it. Of course he keeps his tongue as sharp as his mind. It has allowed him to keep many of the nobles and people of influence in his pocket making him a force to be reckoned with.

Of course this is as much strength as a weakness. Acel hates common folk more than anything, sees them as his lesser and thus only associates with the nobles of the courts. He has caused nothing but trouble for the common man and caused nothing but profit for the nobles. This kind of leverage didn't want anyone high up to stop him. With enough push though the village people would be more than happy to rise up and deal out a little 'justice'.

"There is always more then what a person shows. It does not mean that he will be trouble" I asserted

"You would be a fool to believe that brother and I know you are far from one" Than snarled "He has risen to be one of the three powers under the king."

Before I could counter the doors have opened and through those doors walked that accursed runt! Hans Westerguard, thirteenth in line for the throne. Before he was the weakest of us, he was hardly worth a second look. Since we all came before him we all snatched support, power, allies, and anything else leaving him weak. His level of strength allowed us to ignore him for the most part. We all thought he was weak and kind until he showed his true colours last year. He showed that he is the most twisted out of all of us.

"Hello, my brothers. I hope you are all well." Hans greeted

"I would be doing better Hans if he wasn't here." Nolan growled and gestured to me.

Hans waved it of "We talked about this Nolan. If we are all to gain from this we needed Seth's help. After all we have our trump card, but Seth is not a few tricks up his sleeve."

Before this attempting to obtain the throne of Arendelle business there was only two major powers to be reckoned with under the king. My forces and my goodie two shoes excuse of a brother. Gradin first born of our line held a large amount of power since he is first in line for the throne. Though we were not alone though, some of our other brothers had no alliance with us and worked seeking only profit and glory for themselves.

What infuriated me the most was that Acel and Than were my men before! They worked under me and now they work for HANS! Of all this nonsense my brother taking those that belonged to me pissed me off the most. Though I cannot be entirely under grateful to Hans rise to power, because of him those who were not allied formed their own group (we all often referred to them as the Other Brothers) and left us well enough alone. With this change in power it made Gradin weak. It left him with only the spineless one and the two wanderers.

"Yes brothers he is right. Even if you have turned you backs to me and left me alone it does not mean my strength has weakened." I lied.

Hans motioned for me to sit at the table and I did "I assumed that you have brought your strength with you." I gave him a surprised look and he responded with "Oh come now brother. Even if I told you to come alone, you are not stupid enough to enter an enemy base without a backup plan."

I heard a rasping behind me "Aye, you are right Prince Hans"

My men behind me remove their invisibility enchantment and revealed who they are. After Hans little escapade and rise to strength I made sure to get my own trump card. It took me ages but I found a shaman who was willing to work under me. He may be old and grey but his powers and magical knowledge gave me an advantage in this mess. His two apprentices also allowed me to have some grunt work done as well.

"You have what I requested Shaman Elkas?" Hans questioned

"That we do, but I believe my employer has a word or two to say about this." Elkas replied.

"Yes Hans, something like this does not come cheap and I can guess how important this can be to your plans."

Hans stated "And you want appropriate compensations is that right?"

I nodded "Your plans are just that, plans. What I am giving you is very real and thus requires real payment."

"Very well then, is it gold, knowledge, or a special kind of knowledge you are after?"

This made me curious "What do you mean a special kind of knowledge?"

Hans smiled "I have allied myself with my Other Brothers and their little adventure has turned out fruitful from what I have heard." I cursed. So now he has allied with them. That rogue group of Other Brothers, they are not supposed to be allied with any of the three powers. From what I heard from rumors they were not after political power like the rest of us. They were after magic like all of us, but I felt they wanted more than just that. Their true goal is a mystery even to me.

"And what fruit what that might be?" I asked

Hans chuckled "I don't think even they know what they have other then it is powerful. Enough to give us an advantage over those like our enemy"

"Power will lead you to your own destruction Prince Hans" Elkas replied

Hans countered "And greed will weaken the soul isn't that right shaman? Last time I checked shamans like you are not supposed to be interested in material goods" This shut him up quick.

"Very well what do you purpose?" I finished

"When they come back, we will both benefit from them."

"Last time I checked I was not on good terms with them. How do you know they want anything to do with me?" I questioned

He said "Who do you think funded their little journey? They approached me and I funded them. When they come back they will share their knowledge and we all come out winners."

I mused over this, they had they advantage when it came to knowledge of magic. I had to pay them handsomely just to get my shaman. Their information is usually good. I agreed "Very well I agree, as long as I am paid back for the base of what you have requested."

"And how much would that be?" He questioned. I motioned to my men. One of the shaman's apprentices placed the wrapped up item in front of him. Hans grabbed it an unwrapped it for him to see. He gave me a look of derision "You really do have a leniency for shiny things don't you?"

I looked at him unamused "You expect her to put it on there and then don't you? It has to be appealing if you want something like that to happen."

Hans leaned towards Than to showed him the item "Think you can get her to wear it?" Than laughed "HA. She'll put it on in a second. I won't even need to encourage her."

Hans agreed "Very well your payment shall be in gold for the item and payment in knowledge for the magic. Have you given any thought in the alliance I suggested?"

"I'll work beside you as long as it is profitable."

"Excellent, then we shall go together on this. Now here is the plan my brother."

He explained what he had in mind for his plan. It was risky but it none the less made sense. That many people of influence in one place with this plan they'd fall like dominoes. Provided everything went to plan. "I still can't believe that she would put a request like that out for the world to see."

Hans nodded "She is young and used to peace. She doesn't seem to know much about schemes either. Fortunately those that have volunteered have been replaced with our men."

"Well it matters not whether she is experienced or not, we have this." I said as I stood.

"Then we shall meet again at the appointed time, until then brother." Hans finished

"Shall I lead you back out Seth?" Than offered

"No Than, I can make my way back just fine. Good evening brothers" I ended.

I exited the room with my men not breaking stride until I outside and saw my horse waiting for me beside a stable boy. I took my horse from him and made my way away from this place. Though I offered the shaman and his apprentices horses before making our way here they denied saying it was unnecessary. They seemed to be able to keep pace with a galloping horse over miles just fine (their magic no doubt). When I was far away from that pit of a hideout I turned to Elkas "Your opinion Elkas?"

"Their plan is reckless but they seem to have thought about everything that could naturally go wrong."

"Agreed, though we share a common goal with them do not forget our real goal to this little expedition."

"The day you stop telling me about that is the day I finally get some sleep." He replied

**Hans pov**

I was walking down the halls inspecting my men, weapons, and such. I must admit I am proud of myself. I think I was actually able to catch him off guard a couple of times. Sadly it would be better if he wasn't around at all. He is an asset to my plans but I can't help but feel that he was a little too eager to partner up with me.

"Hans"

I turned to find my comrades Nolan, Than and Acel standing behind me. "We need to talk" Said Nolan. I nodded and gestured to one of the nearby rooms where we could get some privacy from the men.

"What is it you three?" I asked

"I don't like this arrangement we have with Seth." Nolan said

"Acel and I second the motion." Than stated "We've worked under him for a long time until you came along. It would be better for us in the long run if we had just killed him and taken what we needed."

Acel said "He is arrogant, conniving and ruthless. Having him out of the picture would benefit us in more ways than one."

I cut him off "I couldn't agree more with you all that having him gone would be beneficial to us, but only in short term. Keeping him alive in the meantime will help us. He has man power, influence, and the magic that will ensure the plan works as it should. After all with that shaman around it would have been difficult. I only guessed that those three were nearby, not standing right behind him. Their knowledge makes them dangerous, but in time they will be an asset to us."

Than said "You mean when we finally get them on our side. Is that even possible? That shaman sticks to Seth like a bad smell to a pig."

Acel declared "You would be surprised what you can buy with money little brother. After all like Hans said he is greedy, enough money and I think we could get him in our pocket. Maybe we can even get him to get rid of Seth for us."

I added "Well we'll someday get them one way or another. Remember that shaman is his trump card after all. Trumps don't come cheap."

Nolan said "Yes, but from what we've heard he is not nearly as powerful as the snow queen. The only advantage he has over her is knowledge. When push comes to shove that knowledge probably won't save him."

I commented "And that gentleman is why we have our ace in the hole."

"My ears are burning." I heard in a sing song voice.

We all turned to see who spoke and it was none other than Seraphina. Seraphina as usual wore a long flowing red dress with her raven hair tied back in a ponytail and her eyes like a sunrise sparkling. Many of the men found her to be beautiful as did my brothers, which likely explained their behavior around her. Her opinion though was that she disliked many of the soldiers and only tolerated my brothers and me. If not for our deal, I doubt she would be here.

"Ah Seraphina how are you this evening?" I asked

"I am well. I assumed everything went according to plan?"

"Hook, line and sinker" Than answered

She nodded "So he is predictable as always."

I agreed "Quite, dangle a little promise of magic in front of his face and he'll do anything"

"So this little squabble you are having because everything went well?" She asked

"Essentially. Apparently my brothers do not like the idea that Seth is so close to us."

"So they wish to complain about it, yet they do not have the guts to change it."

Acel growled "Why you ignorant craven low class who…" Nolan quickly cut him off with a right hook to the face, making him bend over. It was no secret that she was a commoner, a fact that Acel hated in the slightest. He hated her even more so considering her role. She was not only important to us but dangerous to everyone around her. Angering her was definitely not on our schedule. We all remember what happened to the soldier that got frisky with her. You don't forget screams like that for a long time.

She responded "Thank you Nolan" He nodded in acknowledgement.

"Shall we get ourselves in order then my dear?" I asked

"Yes, sharpen our swords and the like." She responded

Than asked "You going to be ready for what's coming Fina? This isn't going to be some backyard squabble."

"As I have told you all before" Seraphina chuckled

"The Flames of War never bothered me anyway"

**There some new characters for you guys to chew on. I know I was vague with the rest of the brothers but future chapters will sort that out.**

**Now why is Hans here? We all want him to be rotting in some deep dark cell right? Stick around and find out why in the next couple of chapters.**

**Review**


	5. A Ball to Remember

Chapter 5

A Ball to Remember

**Anna pov**

The ball was today. TODAY! Saying I was excited was an understatement. This was the biggest ball we had in a year. So many people were here. Here to dance and eat and sing. It was going to be great. The sad thing about all this was that it was winter. Winter meant that we have less light but now that night has fallen the servants have lit thousands of lanterns around the courtyard making them look like a field of fireflies from my room. Well technically it isn't just my room anymore. Ever since the wedding in the spring it has been our room. I looked from the window to see Kristoff putting on his suit for the evening.

"Isn't this exciting?" I asked

Kristoff replied dryly "Thrilling"

"You don't look thrilled" I mentioned

Kristoff sighed "I know that this is important to the kingdom, but you know I always feel out of place. Here at these events, in these monkey suits."

"Oh come on, you look adorable in your monkey suit" Kristoff gave me an unamused look. "Kristoff you do belong in this world no matter what you feel, and you belong with me." I ended and gave Kristoff a kiss.

"Although I may not so much exist in yours, considering what happened on your run after we were married." I continued

"It was in the mountains Anna; you were excited, happy and loud. Besides it wasn't a big avalanche."

"Yeah, but I think my loud woo was a little much. It was what caused it after all." Kristoff opened his mouth to continue but was interrupted by the music that could be heard from the courtyard below. I said "Anyway the musicians are starting we better get in there if we want to squeeze a dance or two in"

"Ha, I get the feeling you want me in there so you don't have to dance with any of those spry elderly nobles."

* * *

We entered the courtyard with everyone there. Everywhere you could see people were enjoying themselves; having small talk, dancing or just being there. Considering this was about strengthening the ties between kingdoms, I think it is safe to say we are going to be alright.

"There you two are." Jacob said as he walked towards us.

"Hey Jacob, how are things going on here?" Kristoff asked

"Very well actually, the ball activities and the people seem to be doing fine. No mishaps like some of the balls the previous king and queen sometimes had. Except….."

"Except what Jacob?" I asked

"Look at Elsa." He said

We all turned to look at Elsa standing before the crowd in front of the door to the palace. Wearing her usual ice dress she seemed to be a figure of grace that has caused more than one person to look upon her. Though she carried herself regally something appeared to be off with her. Jacob said "She has been acting like this since the beginning of the ball. I know that since everything happened, you two have had smaller balls only including those of Arendelle, but I can't help but feel something is wrong with her. Anna it might be best for you to check up on her, reassure her about all of this. After all she can't be nervous when she gives that speech of hers."

"Alright, all these foreign dignitaries are probably putting her off her game. I'll sort it out. Are you going to be ok Kristoff?"

"I'll be fine. Go on, your sister needs you."

Zig zagging through the crowd and almost knocking over one of the servants carrying glasses of champagne I finally was able to walk up to my sister. I asked "Hey, how are things going?"

"Fine" Elsa said uneasily

"Fine? Everything is going smoothly, everyone at ease and they're happy."

"Yeah I know but…..never mind just forget it."

"Elsa. I'm your sister, tell me what's wrong."

"It's…..I can't help but see some anxious glances. People looking at me from the corner of their eye, whispering about me, some even seem to shirk away from me when I get near. I think maybe this ball was a bad idea" Elsa said uneasily.

"Don't say that. People will naturally feel uneasy from things they don't understand. When this is all over they are going to love you." I reassured. Elsa gave me a worried look, but I gave her an encouraging nod that seemed to put her at ease. Elsa answered "Alright, I'll try to stop worrying."

"Oh, have you seen Sven or Olaf? I haven't seen them anywhere. I figured Olaf would be down here giving everyone a warm hug."

"He felt that since this was important to the kingdom that he should stay in the castle. I guess he decided a talking snowman would likely put people of edge. So to keep him and Sven occupied I left them in my room to look at the chest and read some books"

"Is he still insisting that the horn glows?" I questioned

"Yeah, his theory now of why it isn't glowing is because it's not snowing." Elsa said. We chuckled at the thought. After supper on the first day we had the chest Olaf wandered into Elsa's room to look at the treasures again. He told us when he open the chest the horn was glowing. After he came to tell us what he saw we ran up to the room to see what he was talking about. When we got there the horn was doing anything other than being a horn.

"Would you mind keeping an eye on things? I need to go prepare myself for the speech." Elsa stated

"Didn't you rehearse that thing a million times already?" I inquired

"Yeah, but now that everyone is here I'm a little nervous. I'll be right back." Elsa answered

* * *

**Third person pov**

Elsa walked down the halls away from the sounds of people to go to one of her favorite spots. An open balcony on one of the higher levels. The balcony was large and high enough that it allowed her to see most of Arendelle. See the shimmering lights of the town and what was beyond. The silence had allowed her to contemplate whether or not she should go through with the speech. After all it would not do any harm not to.

The very thought of all those people looking at her, listening to her, judging her made her stomach turn. She knew that the speech needed to be done in order to try to solidify the countries alliances. She did her best to turn her mind to something else to calm herself down. She focused on the glimmering lights of the town and the stars that were finally peeking out of the clouds. Suddenly a light snow fall started around her. "I must be more nervous than I thought."Elsa assumed. She then waved her hands and a wind she conjured up blew away the snow.

"Nervous are we?"

Elsa jumped in surprised and quickly turned to see a man in formal wear that was standing behind her. "Who are you?" Elsa demanded

"Ah forgive my lack of manners. I am Than Westerguard of the Southern Isles."

"Brother of Hans if I recall correctly." Elsa said cautiously

Than winched "Unfortunately for us. Fortunately for everyone else he is in some deep dark cell in god knows where."

"Wouldn't you know where he is being held?" Elsa asked

Than shrugged "If I cared enough to. Among my brothers growing up Hans was seen as an extra, a mistake, someone better left to be ignored. Though the later was an error, his actions proved the mistake part whole heartedly. "

Elsa nodded "Anyway what are you doing up here? Shouldn't you be down with the others enjoying the ball?"

Than grunted "Never been much been much for balls. I always preferred the woods near the town over the castle. Even with its size I found it to be…constricting."

Elsa chatted "If you don't enjoy balls or castles then why are you here? I did invite other members of your family; you could have simply had someone else represent the Southern Isles"

"Due to unfortunate circumstances they were unable to come, leaving me. You would know more than anyone it takes a lot to run a kingdom. Dealing with a variety of kingdom matters takes time and diligence. One of those matters happens to be this"

Than then withdrew a colorful box from the one of his coat pockets and held it out to Elsa. Guardedly Elsa reached out and took the box from his hand. _It's not even Christmas yet and this is the second present I have received_ she thought. Elsa removed to lid to reveal what was inside. What was inside was a gold arm band. The arm band was relatively plain except for small diamonds embedded around a larger one in the center.

"After what happened with our brother, my family felt obligated to mend the bonds between kingdoms."

"And you think you can do that with an arm band?" Elsa said unamused

"An ordinary arm band would not do the deed, no matter how fancy it is. A magical arm band on the other hand might do the trick."

"What do you mean magical?"

"When we heard of your power and what happened last year we knew there must be a way to help you. For the past year we searched in tombs, ancient libraries and we found this. This arm band was used to control the abilities of those born with special talents. We believe that this will help you.

"I don't know. This all seems farfetched. Why should I believe that this thing works?"

"Queen Elsa, we believe that it can. Do you want to continue living your life like this; afraid every day that you will hurt someone, especially Anna. If it changes anything it will be for the better."

Elsa looked at the arm band dubious and glanced towards Than "Put the arm band on. Even if you have that love in your life to control you power, the fear is still there. Waiting to come out, waiting to hurt someone. I was here just a moment ago. Even being a little bit nervous was more than enough to make it snow. You do not completely have it under control. Worst case scenario you put it on and nothing happens. What is there to lose by putting it on?" Elsa took one last look at the golden arm band. In one motion she lifted the arm band from the box and slid it around her right arm.

When she put the arm band on immediately she felt a change. Every day it was the same that feeling of magic. That storm that she felt could rip trees out of the ground, destroy castles, and tear away flesh and bone. Now though it felt different. She couldn't feel the storm inside. She needed to test it.

She moved over to the railing and rested her right hand on its surface. Whenever she rested her hands on something ice formed around them (it was not as bad now as it had been). She then closed her eyes and focused. She remembered the fear, the pain, the loneliness she felt all those years. She opened her eyes to see nothing but the railing. There was no ice. Losing no time she removed her hand from the railing. Elsa focused on the love and emotions that she used since the Great Thaw and was able to conjure up snow and ice around her. She could not believe it. It worked just as he said it would. Her powers were under control, she wouldn't have to worry about freak accidents anymore. She was no longer a danger to those around her with this arm band.

"How does it feel Queen Elsa?"

Elsa responded with glee "It works perfectly, just as you said. Thank you Prince Than, I get the feeling that this did not come cheap to your family."

"Oh it wasn't. My brother paid quite a bit of coin for that arm band. Well, technically father was funding him so I guess you can say he paid for it."

"Your majesties**"**

Elsa Turned noticed that a guard was standing in the entry way "Forgive my interruption but it is nearing the time of Queen Elsa's speech."

"Thank you guard. Actually I don't recognize you, who are you?" Elsa said

"No one of importance you majesty, I was merely one of the ones that responded to your request for guards."

Nodding Elsa turned to Than "Well I better get to the courtyard to give that speech. Are you coming?"

"I thought it was supposed to be in the throne room."

Elsa stated walking towards the hallway "Yeah but with the larger number of people we had to change the location." She suddenly stopped and slowly turned towards him inquiring "Wait a minute. How did you know it was supposed to be in the throne room in the first place?"

Than said calmly "I had to suffer through more than one of my father speeches when he had an event. It was always in the throne room. I merely assumed you would do the same."

Elsa nodded in understanding "Anyway are you coming there is still some time until my insufferable speech. You might be able to grab something to eat beforehand." Than replied "I'll catch up in a bit. I want to enjoy this view. It's not every day I get to see Arendelle in its entire splendor."

Once Elsa had left the balcony the kindness plastered on Than's face disappeared in an instant. With a look of determination Than turned to the guard. "You heard what happened?"

"Yes sir."

"Tell the other men in the palace to ready themselves and then head to the meeting place. Tell them the queen is making the speech in the courtyard instead. It isn't the throne room anymore."

"Yes sir." The guard went into the opposite hallway the queen had, to spread the message among the men and then high tail it to the meeting place. Than then turned to the end of the balcony to look over Arendelle.

Than was surprised by Queen Elsa. She proved to be much more intelligent and cautious prey then he had expected. He cursed himself for letting the bit about the throne room leak out, but also applauded Elsa's observation for catching that. He was surprised though with her caution of the item. He actually had to use the story Hans came up with to get her to wear it. He figured that something that offered what she desired most would be too tantalizing to pass up. Heading towards the court yard he thought _No matter, by the end of the day the result will be the same. By the end of the day, Arendelle will be ours._

* * *

**Hans pov**

We rowed for hours. We rowed through the late afternoon thankful for the early nightfall allowing us to keep out of sight. Well I didn't do any rowing. Just watching the men row in their separate ships was enough to make me feel tried. _Perhaps coming by ship on a windless night was not the best way to sneak into Arendelle_ I thought. After rowing for so long we finally had Arendelle come into view. With renewed vigor the men paddled harder, determined to get there in time. With all the ships around it would have been difficult traversing between them. Luckily for us we made sure to pay off the dock master to keep the stations on the far side open. Good thing we did too, it left us a somewhat open path for us to travel to the docks.

Once we came to the docks Nolan and I made our way into town to the meeting spot. After all you don't send a small army into foreign territory unless you know the path is clear. As we made our way through the streets we found ourselves once again thankful that the majority of people were up around the palace. After all this walking through the streets we finally came to the crossroads near the merchant district.

After looking around Nolan said "It seems to our benefit and loss Hans that we are alone. I don't see Seth anywhere"

I cursed "Blast him! Where is he?"

"I am right here." Elkas said as he came out of the shadows. Alone I noticed.

I questioned "Where is Seth? He is supposed to be here to coordinate."

Elkas replied "Well good evening to you too Prince Hans; to answer your question he is in Weselton. He is organizing an alliance with the king and queen with the help of the duke. He'll meet up with us after we finish here."

_Awful convenient for him _

"His men are with him I assume." I said seething

"No, they are stationed on the other side of the city. After your contact meets up with you he will come to us and inform us to move."

"You came all this way just to tell us that."

"No what you are talking to is merely a projection" Elkas said as he suddenly vanished. After a stunned silence caused by this Nolan said "This night makes no sense to me." I replied "It isn't that much of a surprise that Seth isn't here. He was never much about getting his hands dirty."

"I get that, but its winter. Shouldn't there be snow?" I had to agree with Nolan it was already past fall and there should be at least some snow fall. "My guess is any snow that was around in Arendelle was melted by Queen Elsa. She is probably trying to give her guests less reasons to be reminded of her powers." Nolan countered "Or more likely the increase in temperature dealt with the snow."

I chuckled "Yeah that's more likely. We are only getting into winter now." Ever since that one snow storm weeks ago there has not been one snow fall since. Nolan asked "So where is our 'security' guild contact?" I shrugged and then heard the sound of a horse galloping down the street towards us. Nolan murmured "Speak of the devil here he comes" Riding a horse the contact dressed in the garb of the Arendelle guards quickly got off his horse and bowed to the both of us. "Report" I ordered.

"All has gone according to plan sir. Than has successfully gotten the Queen to wear the arm band. I have seen it with my own eyes." I nodded and motioned for him to continue. "The location of the speech has changed to the courtyard. The queen will soon give her speech and all of the nobility of the other kingdoms will be there. Ripe for the picking sir"

Nolan interrupted "Wide open spaces, lots of room to escape could turn bad if we don't play our cards right. The throne room had fewer exits, more controlled."

_That is why we have our ace_. "We'll have our forces circle them initially and Seth's forces will back us up, while everyone will be focused on her that is. We will strike at the end of this speech."

"Why not attack during the speech?" Nolan questioned

"It is undoubtedly about peace and the security of the kingdoms brother. I can't resist the irony of overthrowing this kingdom after something like that."

I turned to the guard "You go to where Seth's men are stationed and tell them what is going on while we gather our forces." The guard quickly mounted his horse and galloped off to where the men were stationed. While me and Nolan rushed back to the docks to round up our men.

* * *

**Jack pov**

***Morning of the day of the ball**

It was a great day. The time for winter has come. I get to start the real snow storms, lots of snow and cold to go around for everyone. There will be fun and snow days and hearing the children squeal with laughter for the whole season. To commemorate the season I got myself a new blue cloak. Ok it was technically used. It had a couple of holes in it. I did get it from a to-be-burned-bin, but it was still a great day. As I walked through the woods in a mountain range I made sure to leave enough snow and frost in my wake so that even the animals knew that winter was here. I jumped into the air flying high above the trees and mountains. When I was high enough I stopped using my powers to fly and drifted gently on the air currents.

"Wind, tell me what you hear."

When I ask the wind he tells me what he hears and he hears everything. With the sound of the winds thousands of voices came into being. Whenever there is a child that needs some winter time fun I head their way to deliver. Usually I'll just spread winter fun as I go along but sometimes it's useful for making sure every child gets to have some winter fun. Especially in those out of the way places.

_Come on, let's build a snow man._

_There's fresh snow, let's go sledding._

_Snowball fight!_

It helped hearing the voices of the children. I was able to know who wanted a snow day because of it. Even with all the benefits that came with it, it was as painful as it is useful.

_Mommy who is Jack Frost?_

_Nobody sweetheart it's just a myth._

_I hear Jack Frost makes it snow. What do you think Timmy?_

_No one makes it snow it just happens._

I've been alone for years. I don't even know if I can even carry on a conversation with someone. I can see people every day, but it's rare to see another spirit. I know most of them don't like winter because it's cold but it still hurts to see them rush away to the other side of the world just to get warm. To my surprise I heard something, something familiar. If something was old it was usually faint. Pushing away the other voices I focused on that one sound, then like a rising chorus I hear it. The low haunting sound of a horn I knew all too well.

"Impossible. I must be imagining things." I dismissed.

Just as quickly as I said that, the wind stopped. Not as in it stopped telling me what it could hear. Stopped as in stopped blowing and I am now falling towards the earth. Tumbling through the sky I made contact with the woods below. Falling through the branches (hitting what felt like most of them) I finally landed into a snow drift. Not exactly an ideal way to land but I've had worse. I can feel pain like anyone else but the beneficial thing to being a spirit is that I have no bones to break.

Picking myself out of the snow I yelled "Hey, why did you do that?" The wind replied with the sound of the horn. "Come on she doesn't believe in me anymore. I know I made a promise but it hurts too much just to be near her." The winder blew even more making the sound even louder.

"Even if I went she can't see me."

That horn was meant for her emergency situations, when she needed me the most. Like getting lost in the woods or when she's in danger. She's the queen by now, nothing would happen to her. She must have like a billion guards protecting her. All those duties I saw the king and queen do was more than enough to make me go mad. I doubt she would have much time to go out and explore. If she was fine though, why would she blow the horn?

The thing that bothered me the most was the possibility that she believed again. If she believed again then that would mean she knows what the horn is for. If she remembered what the horn is for, then she could be in danger.

Filled with hope and fear I yelled "Wind, take me to Arendelle."

* * *

**Trouble stirring up in Arendelle with Hans at the heart of it. Just what is his plan for the nobles of the ball?**

**Jack Frost has made his day view and shall be seen again.**

**Please Review**


End file.
